Founder is one of the most crippling diseases of horses and ponies, which in severe and recurring cases, can reduce a horse's usefulness and lifespan. Laminitis, the initiating cause of founder, can affect any horse, of any age or sex, at any time of year. Although it is traditionally considered a disease of obese ponies, laminitis can be triggered by a variety of metabolic or physical causes in any horse.
Laminitis is typically caused by devitalization of the supporting laminae within the hoof of ungulates, leading to painful breakdown and tearing of the support tissues suspending the pedal bone within the hoof. If laminitis is not treated properly, the pedal bone drops or rotates downwards, resulting in founder, with total collapse causing severe lameness and risk of death.
Laminitis may be triggered by an upset in the fermentative processes in the gastrointestinal tract, whereby abnormally high amounts of lactic acid results in a condition known as hindgut acidosis. The excess acid destroys beneficial bacteria and leads to damage to the gut wall, thereby releasing endotoxins into the blood. It is these endotoxins that are thought to alter the blood circulation within the hooves, or cause the devitalization of the basement cells on the surface of the lamina.
Laminitis may be treated many ways and sometimes conservatively by confining the animal to a stable or small yard and often starving the animal. A sandy stall is preferred to allow the horse to stand as comfortably as possible. Furthermore, owners will often limit walking of a severely lame horse as further tearing and damage to the laminae will result.
Laminitis may also be treated using anti-inflammatory agents such as phenylbutazone (“bute”) paste. Phenylbutazone is a prescription only medication, and cannot be used preventatively. Furthermore, this agent (like many anti-inflammatory drugs) can lead to side effects such as stomach perforation and allergic reactions. Other pharmaceutical agents that are often prescribed include sedatives, vasodilators and anti-clotting agents especially in the acute stages.
Physical therapy such as hoof support is often applied in an attempt to limit rotation of the pedal bone and other internal structural changes within the hoof. Support shoes which elevate the heels or ‘heart bar’ shoes which support the frog may be used. It is vital that these supportive shoes are correctly applied and regularly adjusted or they can cause excessive pressure and damage to the frog. In severe cases where shoes cannot be nailed on, support bandages or glue-on shoes may be used.
In some cases, calcium and biotin added to the feed for at least 6-12 months after an attack of laminitis helps to promote hoof growth, prevent broken away hoof edges and prevent separation at the white line during recovery. Horses with laminitis may also be commenced on Founderguard®, which is a granular feed additive with an antibiotic (virginiamycin) as the active component. The antibiotic may help to control overgrowth of the bacteria in the hindgut that produce lactic acid as they digest carbohydrate overload from grain or lush grass.
The use of Founderguard® is not without problems since some horses have, or develop allergies against the active component. Furthermore, the product poses exposure risks to humans with the material safety data sheet recommending the minimisation of dusts and the use of protective goggles, elbow-length gloves, facial protection and a mask or respirator.
A further problem of horses is that of overeating. While some animals will eat only what they need, the majority will overeat if given the opportunity. Ponies also easily become obese from overfeeding and therefore are at high risk for colic. Control of overeating is often more complex than simply providing less feed to the animal to consume. A number of horses, for example, may occupy a single paddock such that an overeating horse may consume a greater proportion of all feed on offer.
Hence it is a problem to provide a feed source that provides sufficient nutrition without the animal overeating or that will not lead to laminitis in highly susceptible ponies and horses. Furthermore, once the animal founders, there are no simple means to treat the animals and simultaneously provide sufficient nutrition without exacerbating the condition.
It is an aspect of the present invention to alleviate or overcome a problem of the prior art in providing compositions and methods useful in the treatment and/or prevention of laminitis, founder and overeating. The invention seeks to provide a simple feed composition that will prevent laminitis, founder and overeating and the feed composition may also be used to treat the conditions and eventually maintain the animal so as prevent further episodes of laminitis and founder or overeating.
A reference herein to any document or other matter which is given as prior art is not to be taken as an admission that that document or matter was known or that the information it contains was part of the common general knowledge as at the priority date of any of the claims.